Building Healthy Habits For The Upcoming Year: Prioritizing Health And Wellness
Some individuals may become more focused on learning to build healthy habits as the new year rolls around. However, any moment in the year can be a positive moment to prioritize health and implement a new habit. When the new year arrives, it can be beneficial to brainstorm and create healthy habits you can maintain in the long term and change into a healthy lifestyle. With specific tools, you may train your brain to drop unhealthy patterns and replace your behavior with healthier choices that last the entire year.
Building healthy habits for the upcoming year
There are many ways to build healthy habits that last. Consider the following methods of building new behaviors when looking toward the new year. Creating healthy habits that stick long-term can be challenging, but it can help you keep moving forward on your self-improvement journey.
Get specific on each new healthy habit you build
Before taking action or making a healthy choice, learn what specific actions most motivate you and what benefits these healthy habits can offer.
Some people may be vague in their New Year’s resolutions. For example, they might say, “I’m going to eat healthier,” or “I’m going to exercise more.” However, it can be helpful to narrow these goals down with specifics. Ask yourself what healthy eating looks like. What type of exercise and how much do you want to do? The answers can look different for each individual. When considering how to build healthy habits, it can be crucial to determine the details to help you stay focused and avoid falling into old habits.
Educate yourself on how to build healthy habits
Research physical activity, healthy eating habits, and other activities that benefit mental and physical health. For example, you might structure your goals around the following healthy activities:
- Mindfulness practices
- Sleep hygiene
- Forest bathing
- Massage therapy
- Talk therapy
- Healthy eating
- Exercise
- Sexual health
- Healthcare
- Letting go of old habits
Decide which of these practices would most correspond with your personal goals. Then, research the best ways to implement these healthy activities. Resources for research can include the National Institute of Health (NIH), The American Heart Association, the National Sleep Foundation, and Nutrition.gov.
Create a personalized plan for your healthy habits
When you’ve decided on a new habit to incorporate, create an actionable plan for building healthy habits that makes sense for your life. Take stock of where you are in the present, and be mindful of your limits.
For example, if you are currently eating a steady diet of fast food and junk food, it may not make sense to shift entirely to steamed vegetables and grilled chicken. Don’t start subtracting right away, but add healthier behaviors to slowly shift your eating habits. For instance, try adding a vegetable or salad to your dinner or pairing junk food with a piece of fruit. You might also try swapping soda for flavored water. Carry a reusable container of water and drink it throughout the day. Purchasing a high-quality water bottle can make drinking water more appealing and help you resist the urge to visit the vending machine for a soda.
Look at your exercise routine as a healthy habit
When tackling exercise, consider what is possible and beneficial for your own body. If you are someone who already does cardio sessions, think about adding resistance training. If you are more interested in functional fitness, consider balance and flexibility. As humans age, they lose muscle mass, so weightlifting may be a beneficial addition. Setting goals can be about what is best for the individual and their ability.
If you don’t engage in much physical activity at the moment, but would like to start exercising, know that you don’t necessarily have to spend hours in the gym each week. You might choose to take dance classes, try tai chi, practice yoga, or take walks around your neighborhood. There are many different strategies to consider as you build this healthy habit, and regardless of the type of exercise you prefer, it can reduce stress and help you find friends who are also interested in being active.
Consider sleep hygiene as you build healthy habits
Creating a sleep schedule and practicing sleep hygiene can improve your sleep patterns. Going to bed and waking up at the same time every day may help your body control its circadian rhythms, and getting enough sleep can be as crucial for wellness as healthy eating and exercise. For adults, seven to nine hours of restful sleep can be beneficial for mental health and decrease the risk for certain conditions like heart disease. The power of sleep shouldn’t be underestimated when building healthy habits.
Focus on mental health
Don’t neglect your mental health. Eating healthily, exercising, and practicing sleep hygiene may all contribute to improving mental health, but you can add another type of healthy habit for stress management. Mindfulness practices can help bring your mind into the present moment and relax the body. Try to reduce substance use, such as smoking or drinking, as well. You might choose to replace substance use with healthier choices to make it easier to cut back.
If you are struggling with substance use, contact the SAMHSA National Helpline at (800) 662-4357 to receive support and resources. Support is available 24/7.
Use SMART goals to help you build healthy habits for the upcoming year
Research shows that the brain can build healthy habits more effectively if a goal is specific and time-based. SMART is an acronym for the following:
- Specific: “I want to be healthier” is not a specific goal. However, “I want to improve my cardio so I can run a marathon next fall” is.
- Measurable: How do you know that you are achieving what you set out to do? Using the previous example of running a marathon, creating a running schedule may help you measure your progress.
- Attainable: Is this goal attainable for you personally?
- Relevant: Try to set goals that are important to you instead of those you believe you must achieve for someone else or society.
- Time-bound: Have time in mind when you create your goal. Don’t throw it out there—make a path to get there by a specific time.
Set up a reward system
When you have created your goals for the year, develop strategies to reinforce them positively. For example, you might offer a healthy reward to yourself when you’ve reached certain milestones. You may recruit friends or family members to help keep you on track or buddy up with a friend trying to create healthy habits for themselves. Working toward progress with friends and enjoying a healthy reward together can be an excellent way to integrate good habits into your lives. The accountability provided by others can make it easier to steer clear of unhealthy patterns and achieve success with new habit formation.
Ask for help regarding how to build healthy habits
Therapy may be a beneficial resource if you are serious about lifestyle change but don’t know where to turn. A licensed therapist can offer stress management practices and healthy coping mechanisms and guide you as you reinforce healthy habits.
If the holidays have you completely swamped, online therapy can be as effective as in-person therapy for creating healthy habits of thought and behavior. With online platforms like BetterHelp, you can get matched with a licensed therapist and meet with them via phone, video, or live chat sessions from anywhere with a stable internet connection. In addition, you can have other resources like journaling prompts and worksheets, which may be motivational throughout the year.
Studies also back up the effectiveness of online therapy. In one study, internet-based therapy was as effective and sometimes more effective than face-to-face therapy for burnout. Participants of the online intervention found significant reductions in stress and burnout after meeting with a therapist.
Takeaway
How can I improve my healthy habits, such as exercise and proper eating?
In general, it’s most effective to start with small, manageable changes as you develop new habits. For example, if you don’t have an exercise routine, you might start by taking a walk three times each week. Once this becomes a habit, you might add in some resistance training, and so on.
What are 10 tips for a healthy lifestyle?
Here are 10 tips for a healthy lifestyle:
Stay hydrated
Prioritize fruits, vegetables, and whole grains
Reduce alcohol and caffeine consumption
Aim to get seven to nine hours of sleep each night
Exercise several times each week
Spend time with friends and loved ones regularly
Engage in hobbies that you enjoy
Participate in activities that give you a sense of purpose
Find strategies to manage your stress levels
Schedule regular check-ups with your primary care provider
How can I build good habits?
One way to make healthy habits stick is to practice habit stacking. This generally refers to “stacking” a new habit on top of an existing habit. For example, if you’d like to get into the habit of exercising after work, you could link the habit of taking off your work shoes with putting on your workout clothes. You could remind yourself to engage in this new habit by setting out your workout clothes near the area where you will be taking off your shoes.
How can I develop healthy eating habits?
Developing healthy eating habits can seem daunting. You might consider speaking to your primary care provider or a registered dietician for personalized advice. However, you could also simply try to prioritize fruits, vegetables, and whole grains in your meals and snacks. You could also try planning your meals and cooking at home more frequently. If you have a tendency to buy junk food, it may be helpful to set a limit for how many treats you’ll buy when you go grocery shopping.
How can I improve my lifestyle and health?
There are many ways to improve your overall well-being. Creating a daily routine that includes various types of self-care can be an excellent start. You might identify goals related to your physical or mental health, break them down into manageable steps, and include those steps in your routine. Knowing what your goals are can help you stay motivated.
What is the best way to get healthy?
Focusing on getting enough quality sleep, eating nutritious food, and exercising regularly can have a significant impact on your overall health.
How do you build habits together?
The concept of “habit stacking,” or stacking new habits on top of existing habits, can be an effective way of making a habit stick. For example, if you enjoy watching TV every night, you could add the habit of stretching during commercial breaks.
What is the best habit to build?
There may not be one single “best habit” to build, but getting sufficient sleep, eating nutritious food, and exercising tend to be crucial to a healthy life.
How to lead a healthy life?
A healthy life usually involves quite a bit of balance, as well as healthy habits. Exercise, nutritious eating habits, plenty of sleep, and rewarding relationships tend to be important parts of a healthy life.
What is the best lifestyle for students?
Students, particularly those in high school and college, often experience sleep deprivation. It can be important for students to prioritize sleep, as a lack of sleep can contribute to numerous mental and physical health concerns, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
- Previous Article
- Next Article